www.incontinentsupport.org

[sociologygeek]

Paul, i never found the dual tape system on diapers like tranquility to be very useful.. thus i avoid using diapers that have that.. I guess with my limited hand coordnaiton, i need tabs that are more refastenable than that, yet still stick well.. which is why ive used velcro tab diapers, and quite successfully.
_________________
"We cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love" Mother Teresa

[JoeK]

Hi Sociologygeek,

I don't think so......while for a cloth diaper that is certainly true, a disposable diaper is more complex in construction, primarily to provide the concealability desired by most, while providing the protection demanded by anyone wearing a diaper.

Absorbancy is built in to a disposable diaper with cellulose fluff and SAP crystals....Super Absorbant Polymer. SAP is what gells when you wet and swells a diaper out to many times its dry thickness. The fluff provides some absorbancy, for sure, and to some degree, wicking to carry wetness to other, dryer parts of the diaper.

My feelings are that SAP allows a thinner diaper that wears well under clothing but doesn't wick well since there is relatively little fluff. A diaper that is heavy on SAP absorbs a lot...but just in the crotch where the source of wetting occurs. Typically these diapers will leak and require changing while the whole rear of the diaper is virtually dry.

More fluff makes for a thicker diaper so concealment becomes an issue, from a marketing standpoint...who will buy your thicker diapers? But the thicker diaper makes more use of the diaper by wicking wetness up the back of the diaper. I see this with Molicare which I think was one of the first to be somewhat effective at wicking wetness from the crotch to allow more wear time. Now Abena X Plus provides a good balance of fluff and SAP for an extended wear diaper.

The downside to more fluff, inspite of it's comfort and wicking ability, is it is hard to keep it from clumping when it gets wet. I think we are all aware of the "useless" diapers we have tried where the padding clumps and falls from the back sheet into the crotch, rendering the diaper useless for any further wear. And the clumping and failure of the fluff padding can occur with active folks (such as bike riders or joggers) even when they haven't wet the diaper yet!

Keeping the fluff thin makes it a lot easier to keep it from clumping and falling away. The trick is to make a diaper with thick enough fluff to provide absorbancy, wicking and comfort, while keeping it in place for the duration of the diaper wear. SAP added to this makes for an ideal diaper for extended wear and this pretty much describes the Abena X Plus.

So does a thicker disposable mean a more absorbant diaper?....no, from the stand point that you can make an all fluff diaper with no SAP and it won't have near the absorbancy of a diaper with SAP.

But, is a thicker disposable a better diaper? Here the answer is a careful maybe!

So there's my two cents worth....FWIW.....<grin>
JoeK

[JRB]

I wear the Abri-Form diapers with the "fixing pants" that Abena also sells. These pants really hold my diaper in place all of the time. There is never any clumping as you say while wearing these ove my diapers. In addition no leaks either.

I have experienced the clumping when used to wear vinyl pants over these as there is no support as in tighter fitting nylon pants.

[PuddleGuy]

Paul, you do make a valid point about the price. I have tried tranquility's line of products and just wasn't very pleased with them. Agreed, sometimes it is better to use more of a cheaper product than to pay the money for something with better performance.

But I look at it this way... if I only have to use two Bambinos in a given day versus 5 Attends or 4 Abena Supers I have saved myself a lot of time, plus using less diapers means carrying less with me when I leave the house, and I can avoid having to change in a crowded public restroom or at a gas station. I'll gladly pay the extra money to forego the pleasure of changing in a tiny and filthy stall in a public restroom with a door that may or may not lock.
_________________
~~PuddleGuy

[sociologygeek]

[Sandy]

Getting back to the tapes. has anyone wore the Kendall's with the single tape on each side. Sorry to say they didn't fit me good. and the quality of the diaper was junk like everything else I've had with the Kendal name I've used. But call me lazy but Just having one tape to deal with was neat If they could just do that with a quality brief and make it fit to I won't hold my breath .........................Sandy

[johnstone]

Sandy, Sandy, Sandy.......just stay with quality. Junk is junk!

[Sandy]

Yes well you know. I can't help myself from trying something new or different. My butt has worn more different types of diapers then most professional models have worn clothes

............................Sandy